GCIAre we about to see a Crash in House Prices?
Taking Stock on Tuesday 31st October 2023
Taking Stock: Is a look at today's top business news & investment views plus we cover the winners, losers, the most read company news & the most followed. Today this includes:
Are we about to see a Crash in House Prices?
British lenders approved 43,328 mortgages in September, the lowest number since January, which is drop of -32.5% Year on Year.
Net approvals for remortgaging fell to around 20,600, the lowest since January 1999, a drop of -57.9% Year on Year.
In the U.S. new mortgage applications are at a 1995 low.
According to latest data from Nationwide, average UK house prices fell by 5.3% in the year to September, matching the decline recorded in August, which was the biggest annual drop since 2009.
The UK Nationwide Housing Price Index for October will be released at 7am tomorrow.
Companies discussed on “Taking Stock” today:
Taylor Wimpey #TW. 06:00
Persimmon #PSN 06:25 & 30:45
Begbies Traynor #BEG 09:15 & 12:20
Wincanton #WIN 14:20
BP #BP. 18:10
Arc Minerals #ARCM 18:40
Good Energy #GOOD 19:00
Vast Resources #VAST 19:10
Velocys #VLS 19:30
HeiQ Plc #HEIQ 21:00
Hydrogen Utopia International #HUI 21:50
Real Good Food #RDG 23:00
Atlantic Lithium #ALL 24:15 & 39:15
Bioventix #BVXP 26:30
MJ Gleeson #GLE 31:55
S4 Capital #SFOR 33:15
Scancell #SCLP 35:45
Ondine Biomedical #OBI 36:35
Vistry #VTY 40:50
Greatland Gold #GGP 41:50
Hummingbird Resources #HUM 42:20
Prospex Energy #PXEN 42:55
Warpaint London #W7L 43:20
Brand Architekts #BAR 43:50
TOP BUSINESS STORIES
Firms going bust on track for worst year since 2009
The number of companies going bust this year is on track to be the highest since the depths of the financial crisis in 2009.
Insolvencies rose 10% from a year ago in the three months to the end of September, the latest official figures for England and Wales show.
There has also been a sharp rise in the number of firms at risk of going bust.
Firms in "critical financial distress" jumped 25% in the last three months, insolvency expert Begbies Traynor says.
They are defined as having county court judgments exceeding £5,000 against them - often a precursor to going under.
UK shop price inflation at lowest since August 2022
Prices in British store chains rose at the slowest pace in more than a year in October, according to industry data that adds to signs that the country's high inflation rate will resume its fall.
The British Retail Consortium said annual shop price inflation dropped to 5.2% from 6.2% in September, its weakest since August 2022.
Food price inflation fell for the sixth month in a row to 8.8% from 9.9%. Food prices rose slightly in month-on-month terms after the first such fall in over two years in September.
Fourteen million UK adults used buy now pay later in six months, the FCA says
There has been a "significant increase" in the number of people using Buy Now Pay Later options to purchase items, with those frequently using the service more likely to be in financial difficulty, the finance regulator has said.
Roughly 14 million people, 27% of UK adults, used Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) to purchase something in the six months to January 2023, according to analysis by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
This is up from 17% of UK adults who reported using it in the preceding 12 months to May 2022.
BNPL is a way in which goods can be bought on credit, paid back in interest-free instalments. Popular providers include PayPal and Klarna.
Research from the FCA also showed frequent users of BNPL are more likely to be in financial difficulty.
Those who used it more than 10 times in the last 12 months were more than twice as likely to also have a high-cost credit product (48% of users), compared to people who hadn't used it (22% of people who hadn't used BNPL).
Disclaimer & Declaration of Interest
The information, investment views and recommendations in this article are provided for general information purposes only. Nothing in this article should be construed as a solicitation to buy or sell any financial product relating to any companies under discussion or to engage in or refrain from doing so or engaging in any other transaction. Any opinions or comments are made to the best of the knowledge and belief of the writer but no responsibility is accepted for actions based on such opinions or comments. Vox Markets may receive payment from companies mentioned for enhanced profiling or publication presence. The writer may or may not hold investments in the companies under discussion.